High Altitude Incubation

[WalnutHill]

I did a quick check of shell temps since the incubator is sitting at 102. All but 1 were at 100, so not too bad. I will turn at dinner time and do a quick check of temps then.

ChickenLegs. For this hatch I would very much like to do it all still air. However, I have been thinking about getting a pancake fan that I can modifiy to turn SLOWLY. Very slowly. It would be interesting to see if I could hybridize between still air and the traditional forced air style. Just the slightest air movement to help move the warm air layers. This I will add to the next hatch. Heaven knows I have plenty of Muscovy eggs!

I did a "modified" fan for my hatcher. Just take a 12v PC cooling fan and hook it to a 9v DC power supply (or a selectable voltage power supply).

Moving the air does not suck out the moisture, unless you are pushing air out of the incubator or pulling air into the incubator. It can help raise humidity beyond what still air can do, thanks to added evaporation. You WILL need to adjust your heat down and adjust vents, most likely...but mount the PC fan to blow into a dead corner below the emitter and you should be on track.

I personally like having the eggs up just a little off the floor. You don't have to worry about the temp difference below the egg when it is suspended, but if it is losing heat to the incubator floor that may be an issue. Roll and check the shell temp on the bottom of a sampling to see.

My incubator is also a fan hybrid. I connected the AC fan to power behind the STC-1000 temp controller, so the fan only cycles when the element is on. That breaks up the striation. And it cycles often enough so that the benefit of moving air is there without the constant breeze of forced air.

 

[ChickenLegs13]

Seems like sitting directly on the tubing would be same as sitting directly on a heating element, with a tendenacy to overheat.. But contact transfer is the way a hen does it. I guess if you had the water temp in the tubes just right it would work.

 

[bumpershoot]

I was walking through our office and spied this little tiny tiny pancake fan and decided to hook it up to a little 4v phone charger. It had a little more airflow than I wanted so my son blocked some of the airflow. It now barely moves air, so I stuck it in. It's on the far side from the heating element and I am hoping it moves the layers of warm around just a bit. I will try and take a pic tomorrow. After it had been in for an hour or so I checked egg temps and some were a little hot. I'll check again soonish as I think it's just the box re-stabilizing.


ChickenLegs: on heating with the tubing...the water will be warmed and temperature controlled by a probe in a water wiggler sitting on top the tubes. I don't **think** that it will overheat at the contact points, but it's worth considering as a possibility. I also think the sand would help disperse the heat.

 

[ChickenLegs13]

Also consider a hen's flat rubbery skin will make more surface contact than a round metal tube will. Again, thinking out loud.

 

[Percheron chick]

Pop on over to the colorado thread. Lots of people hatching at altitude and can help answer your questions.

 

[bumpershoot]

Also consider a hen's flat rubbery skin will make more surface contact than a round metal tube will. Again, thinking out loud.

The tube will be plastic, tygon to be specific, but not hugely flexible. I am open to ideas beyond sand (which is already on the table) for a surface to put eggs on.